Snacks are important to small children. Younger children need to be fed more often than older children or adults. Likewise, small children require smaller amounts of food with each feeding. Thus parents of these children often times provide small dried snacks such as raisins, Cheerios™ or other cereals. In addition to needing smaller snacks as such small children need something to distract them especially when traveling. Time spent occupied with small dried food snacks is time that the child does not disturb the parent. Children are well known for their abilities to spill food and drinks. For these reasons it is desirable to have a spill proof bowl to lessen the spilling of food by children. Likewise, it is desirable to have snacks dispensed in smaller amounts or aliquots, not only for children but also for dieting teenagers or adults.
Young children are often unable to open food containers that have removable lids. Normally such lids are designed for adult use. Young children find it difficult if not impossible to remove ordinary lids from food containers. Children likewise have difficulties reattaching the lids of such containers. During both the process of removing or replacing lids on food or drink containers the contents often are spilled by children.
The specific advantage of the present invention is that the short distance from door opening to front and side walls prevents fingers from getting caught between door and walls; and the hand from getting trapped in a large open area. Likewise in certain embodiments the short distance from lower end of door opened 90 degrees relative to top surface of bowl bottom prevents the hand from getting trapped in a large open area. Turned down edge(s) on the secondary door prevents fingers from being caught. Certain embodiments have turned up ridges around secondary openings to prevent catching fingers.
While the present invention is most useful for dry snack pieces, the proper modification of the container portion will allow that modified container to be used as spill resistant drink containers. Other embodiments of the container such as placing the lid on a vertical side will allow the container to be used for larger dry pieces.
Various types of modified lids which have secondary openings are known to the art. For example U.S. Pat. No. 4,679,700 disclosed a self closing top for a container. U.S. Pat. No. 4,328,904 teaches a modified lid for a container which lid allows a hand into the container to pickup one or more pieces of material that is in the bottom of the container. A similar type container is taught by U.S. Pat. No. 3,116,927 to blindly present game pieces for the game of that patent.